


I Think I'll Miss This One This Year

by TheBiFromUNCLE



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:34:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28292463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBiFromUNCLE/pseuds/TheBiFromUNCLE
Summary: After a frustrating year alone, Leonard McCoy thought he was ready to spend the holiday in peace and quiet. But he can't help reminiscing over a chance encounter last New Year's Eve that's been following him all year.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Leonard "Bones" McCoy
Comments: 5
Kudos: 44





	I Think I'll Miss This One This Year

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Christmas Wrapping" by The Waitresses

Maybe Leonard shouldn’t have gotten the Christmas tree after all. 

It had been a last minute decision, after spending almost the entire month of December insisting he could do without one. Waste of money, just to spend what little free time he had sweeping up pine needles. Leonard simply wasn’t Doing Christmas this year. 

But then he had passed a tree lot on the way home from the hospital and had seen the scrawniest tree that couldn’t be given away. He’d been able to carry it home in one hand. A string of lights were thrown over it and now as it stood in the corner of his living room, it didn’t look half-bad. The golden lights made the room feel cosy and romantic. 

And they made Leonard feel lonely. Like maybe he shouldn’t have turned down all of his seasonal invites. Hell, maybe he should have asked Christine and Geoff over for a quiet drink or two.

Leonard sighed. Christmas Eve was too late to be making any plans. And he was ok with that. Really. This year had kicked his ass to hell and back and he needed a break. He wasn’t back in at the hospital until the second. Just a few weeks ago that uninterrupted stretch of vacation time seemed like an unreachable dream. Leonard had always considered himself a fairly solitary person but now all that time alone felt daunting. Still, he was determined to make the most of it. He was free to crack a beer and put his feet up. Maybe he’d finally watch one of those classic movies he’d always meant to but never found the time. As he stared at his meager tree however, Leonard found his thoughts drifting back to last year.

Last year and Jim.

In his memory, the air that night shimmered with frost and glittered tinsel and Jim’s face was a soft golden glow.

He’d never been one to go out on the sloppiest night of the year but that night he’d been only too eager to trail Scotty from party to party and found himself knocking back shots for the first time since med school. He felt itchy and desperate to climb out of his skin and be someone else. Someone who hadn’t been served divorce papers two weeks ago because his college sweetheart couldn’t bear one more Christmas with him.

At the time he’d made a so-sad-it’s-funny joke about how it was the best Christmas gift Joceylen had ever given him. They’d both laughed weakly, then cried together and hugged. And then she had packed a suitcase and left for her parents house. A New Year’s Eve party was just the distraction he needed.

And he had met Jim who, amazingly, as beautiful and golden and shiny as he was, seemed interested in rusty old, tin-plated Leonard. Jim had pressed his body into Leonard’s when they kissed at midnight and the way he smiled when he pulled back had made Leonard realise he could take this man home if he wanted to.

Home to the bed he’d shared with his wife, made up with sheets that still smelled of her.

“I’m married”. Leonard cringed now at the memory how he had blurted it out so tactlessly. His bedside manner left a lot to be desired.

Jim’s expression had shattered like glass and frozen over like ice.

“I mean, I’m getting divorced. She’s gone but. Legally, I’m still married”, he had scrambled to explain over the noise and fireworks and alcohol.

Jim’s face had softened slightly.

“You better not be a dickhead”. He punched his number into Leonard’s phone.

“When you’re ready”. His lips were warm against Leonard’s cheek and then he’d been gone. On to better prospects with less baggage no doubt and Leonard didn’t blame him.

Flicking through the channels now, Leonard wished he hadn’t left it so long to call. But he had been an embarrassed dickhead when he bumped into Jim in March.

"Scotty? I'm broken down on Mayberry Street. Any chance I can get a tow?" 

"I'm up to my neck here Doctor, but I'll send one of the lads out to ye and he'll take a look". 

It was the last thing Leonard had needed. He'd just finished a double shift and his back and feet were aching and he just wanted to be home in bed. 

"Hey dickhead!", Jim had called cheerfully from the tow truck. 

"Oh no". Jim had a beautiful pout. 

"I mean, hello. Hi. You work for Scotty?" 

"We go way back. Close enough that I invite him to New Year's parties". 

Jim wasn't gonna drop it. 

"Listen Jim, I am sorry. I really did mean to call but I got tied up in selling the house and finalising everything…." He had trailed off helplessly. A midnight kiss was fun but here broken down on the side of the road, Jim could see the kind of man he truly was. 

"Your shit's all fucked up." 

"Don't I know it." 

Jim had slammed the hood down sharply. 

"So you riding in the cab with me or what?" 

Sitting side by side in the cramped cab had been awkward. It was the closest Leonard had been to anyone since, well, New Year's. 

"So, finalised huh?" 

"What?" 

"You said you were getting everything finalised. Does that mean it's official?" 

"Oh." The strange mix of relief and shame at being divorced still had a sting then. "Yeah. It's….all over." 

Leonard remembered how Jim had struggled between keeping his eyes on the road and glancing over to him. 

"I'm sorry."

"No you're not." Leonard said with a snort. 

Jim's grin had been wry and beautiful. 

"OK maybe not, but I am sorry you're sad about it."

Bones ran a hand through his hair. 

"I don't even know if I'm sad about it. It's just. I thought I was gonna spend the rest of my life as someone's husband. And now I'm not. What am I supposed to do now?" 

"Get a drink with me?" 

Sitting in his sparsely decorated apartment, Leonard smiled to himself. Jim's audacity was part of what attracted him to the younger man. And his determination. He seemed to have set his sights on Leonard and wouldn't be deterred. 

Leonard had politely declined the invitation, feeling too raw from selling the house, knowing he wasn't ready. And Jim seemed ready to wait. But the rest of the year seemed determined to thwart them. Heart pounding like it was about to break his ribs, Leonard texted him in April, in between shifts. Somehow throughout the staggered, halting conversation, he had picked up a nickname and his burgeoning attraction blossomed into a fully-fledged crush. 

They tried to make a date but a doctor's hours were unsociable at best, and Leonard (Bones, Jim called him Bones) had signed on for extra shifts in a bid to avoid spending time alone in his new bachelor pad. 

When summer finally came and Leonard finally had three whole days free, Jim had already left for Iowa to spend the summer helping his mother recover from surgery. 

In September, Leonard went on a date with someone who wasn't Jim. He broke his dry spell and had felt awful afterwards. He thought it would have felt like cheating on Joceyln but more than that it felt like a betrayal of Jim. He tried not to think about it. 

Then there had been the Halloween party. Leonard had been so proud of himself for inviting Jim. Making a move. And then Jim got stuck in his apartments elevator, wedged tight between the sixth and fifth floor. 

Now on December 24th, Leonard could finally admit it just wasn't meant to be. That bitter epiphany however, did not solve the rumbling in his stomach and the lack of food in his fridge. Leonard had forgotten to stock up before the holiday. 

Heaving a heavy sigh, Leonard pulled his coat back on. He was one beer in, drinking through his reminiscing, so driving was out. He'd have to walk, and it was starting to snow. 

The cashier looked pissed to be working and outright contemptuous of Leonard's frozen pizza for one. He tried not to look too closely at the other patrons of the 24/7 grocery store. Everyone was either in a frazzled rush or taking their slow, sweet time, no doubt reluctant to return to their lonely homes. 

Snow was thick on the ground on the way home, squeaking softly under his feet and soaking through his shoes. Leonard pulled the collar of his coat tight around his neck, cursing himself for forgetting his scarf. Snowflakes were sticking to his jeans, leaving him cold and damp. He didn't even want the damn pizza anymore, he just wanted to go to bed. Maybe he could sleep through all of Christmas day. 

"Bones!" 

The voice cut through the snow-muffled street and Leonard's head snapped up. 

Jim. 

Jim was here, standing before him. With a bag of take-out. Jim. 

Leonard couldn't fight the smile that broke out across his face and Jim's answering grin was beatific. 

"Jim!" 

"Bones! It's so good to see you!" Jim shuffled his bag from on hand to the other and Leonard struggled with his pizza and they settled for an awkward, one-armed hug. It was the first time they had embraced since New Year's. Leonard didn’t want to let go. Jim stayed close when they broke apart. 

"How are you?" Why did Leonard sound so breathless? 

"I'm good, I'm good I'm just", Jim held up the bag of food. "Getting some Chinese."

Leonard stepped back. 

"Yeah of course, I'm sorry I must be keeping you." 

"Huh?" 

"I mean, Christmas Eve, you must have places to be. People waiting on you."

Jim frowned - god he even frowned beautifully - and then his expression cleared. 

"Oh yeah, no, I'm Jewish. I got all the family stuffed wrapped up like, last week." Jim shrugged. "What about you?" 

Leonard found himself flushing. 

"I'm. By myself. Just thought I could do with some alone time. Kind of regretting it now though." Suddenly, Leonard was gripped by a kind of courage he had never experienced before. "If you're not doing anything-" 

"I'd love to!" Jim stepped back into his space. "I'd really love to". 

"Nice tree." 

Jim set his take-out down on the coffee table. 

"You can go ahead and heat that up in the microwave, I've got plates and stuff." 

Jim shrugged out of his coat. 

"I'm not hungry."

Leonard found he was still riding high on his wave of courage. He cupped Jim's face in both hands and brought their lips together. Jim's arms were around him instantly, his lips warm and soft and plush. 

Leonard was still cold and uncomfortable but it was the best kiss of his life. He could feel Jim smiling against his lips and couldn't help but smile in return. 

"What's so funny?" he murmured, pressing a kiss against the corner of Jim's mouth. 

"Nothing, I just", Jim sighed as Leonard swiped his tongue across his plump bottom lip. "I just thought, thank god you're a good kisser." 

"Um, thank you". Leonard leant his forehead against Jim's. 

"It's just that after a year of build up, if you turned out to be terrible, I would have cried". 

Leonard laughed out loud. He dropped his hands to Jim's waist and pulled him in close. Jim hummed appreciatively. 

"Are you busy tomorrow?" 

"Free as a bird." 

"How about the day after." 

"Nothing planned." 

"Good." Leonard kissed along Jim's neck, taking his time. Jim tipped his head back, exposing the lovely line of his neck for more kisses. His hands were tight on Leonard's arms, squeezing his biceps. 

"Why? Something in mind?" Jim sounded a little breathy. 

"Because I wanna take you to bed if you're agreeable. And if you are, I don't plan on letting you out of it til New Year."

Jim's beautiful mouth dropped open and he blinked blankly, once, twice. 

"That sounds fine, Bones. Just fine."

Leonard grinned. Christmas really was his favourite holiday after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> This is for everyone whose year didn't go the way they wanted.


End file.
